Things are a little different!!

Hey there!!!

My blog has moved!! You can see my updated blog and all of my artwork on my new website over at www.christyunderwood.com

Come on over, prop your feet up...stay a while.

See you there!!!

Barney Tales Collection Book 1 now on Amazon!

I have been gone but you are not forgotten.

I swear it!!

I have been crazy busy working on my first published children's book.

It's Book 4 of the Barney Tales collection.

While we're waiting for it to come out, head on over to Amazon and grab your copy of the first book 'Barney Meets BeeBee'.

~Barney is such a friendly little kitty. He's curious, sweet, and always thoughtful. Barney was rescued from the kitty shelter with his pal Elmer and is so excited to start exploring and finding new adventures. Little does he know that those adventures are right around the corner. A scary masked monster, a fluffy cat named BeeBee, and a restored old race car all help Barney realize he has the courage to face whatever challenges may come his way.~

While I'm not the illustrator for Book 1, I will be included in the following books. Make sure to grab the whole collection.

I might be a little biased, but these are the cutest books ever!!

Order your copy of Barney Meets BeeBee now on Amazon.com

Also, don't want to miss out on the release dates for the following books? Of course you don't!
Like the BarneyTales Facebook page!  to stay in the know!

Worry. Be Afraid. Be absolutely terrified. Just don't give up.

I’ve been an illustrator for 2 years now. I’m still very green in the industry and I know I have so many things to learn but the fact is I’m not letting any of that stop me because being an illustrator is what I want to do.

It’s all I think about every day, all day long.

I’ve done a lot of research to try and figure out the exact game plan of what I should do.

What’s the best way to jump-start my career? What’s the best pencil? Best paper? How long to draw? Perfect way to practice? Best Photoshop brush? What’s the best computer program?  

I thought if I could just find that one perfect tutorial or that one step-by-step process my art would somehow be amazing.

I’ve asked many artists for guidance and help in trying to figure out the best plan to get my work created. The ones that were able to respond came back graciously and gave various suggestions and tips.

None of them helped.

To begin with it was frustrating but the more I thought about it, the more it made sense.

They can’t tell me how I should do my work. They can only offer guidance on how they create theirs but it’s still up to me to create my own art.

And you only find out what works for you…by doing the work and experimenting with different methods!

I found out that the perfect method is whatever method YOU use that will help YOU create YOUR work.

That involves hard work and determination on my part.

The thing I struggle with the most is I am absolutely terrified when I sit in front of my drawing table or my computer. Why? Because the image I have in my head may or may not appear on the canvas.

The more I created, the more I realized it’s okay if it doesn’t match. Eventually it will. Or it will be even better.

I have to remind myself that I’ve learned so much these past 2 years and 10 years from now I’ll look back and will have learned so much more.

I am learning to be happy with my progress but I never want to allow myself to be satisfied. I want to keep pushing myself to make better art.

I worry my work won’t be accepted. I’m afraid that I’ll spend 30 hours on a piece and not one person will notice. I’m terrified that I’ll keep sending my work to publishers, agents, and reps but nothing will come of it. These are all normal fears I deal with on a daily basis.

Then I tell myself that it’s time to get back to work.

Being an artist is the best job ever!

Being an artist is the best job ever.

It really is!! 

I get to be a kid again. I get to draw and paint for the fun of it (and for the client!). There just cannot be a better job! 

Can't be. 

I've been hired to be the illustrator for the oh-so-sweet children's book series Barney Tales! It's an out of this world opportunity!

The author, Deborah 'Noni' Morton is amazing to work with and the love she has for her characters and the way she brings them to life is just so awesome. 

I can't wait to share the many different adventures the whole Barney Tales gang goes on. 

The fabulous Stewart Moskowitz was the original illustrator for this fun project which means I have some super-duper enormous shoes to fill. 

So excited for the challenge! 

Take a look at the website and get yourself familiar with the lovable gang of Barney Tales! The books will be available to purchase soon! 

http://barneytales.com/

Artist's high!

It has been TOO long since I last posted and I'm sorry. Let me fill you in on what's been going on.

Runners have this thing they call the runner's high...where they just get in that groove that makes them feel like they can go on forever and ever. The runner feels incredible.

I like to think there is also an artist's high.

And I hit it.

I haven't really ever hit my sweet spot for creating; it's always seemed to be just out of reach. I've watched video after video and read tutorial after tutorial but nothing has ever really clicked. I know the software and I know enough about the illustration industry to get me going a pretty decent distance.
The problem? Lack of confidence.

Since I'm essentially a beginner, I've always had this thought in my head that by looking at and reading the work of others I would somehow develop this amazing drawing and painting ability. Looking at the work of other artists gave me a false sense of confidence that I could do the same as they did.

And eventually I can. But it's going to take time.

So, I did something unique.

Crazy.
Strange.

I started creating. On my own. Without tutorials.

I took the mental library I have created over the past year from looking at the work of other artists and decided to just start drawing and painting.

I started with a basic idea, worked through the details in the beginning, kept working through the way I wanted it to look throughout the whole process, and never gave up.

It took me a couple of days but once that 'artist's high' kicked in, I just couldn't stop.

And I have to tell you...I love it. It's exactly what I wanted it to look like.

On to the next one!!

Learn the rules to break them.

It's been far too long since I updated my blog but I have a good reason. I've been doing a lot of research on a variety of areas.

I was getting quite frustrated and angry at myself because my art was lacking. That resulted in a lot of emotional breakdowns because of how passionate I am and where I want my art career to be. 

What I found out was I'm frustrated because I lack understanding. 

I read up on Da Vinci and have been studying him and other masters for some time now. They spent years studying and learning everything about their craft...I'm only at the one and a 1/2 mark. I've got quite a ways to go.

Another thing I realized is I tend to break a lot of rules with my art...but how can I break the rules if I don't know the rules? 

I can't. 

So, I'm learning the rules. I started with values. 

This was my first attempt.

This was my second. Obviously there have been improvements but I still have quite a ways to go. 

Right now I'm working on perspective. 

I've started following Brandon Dayton as well as spending time working through tutorials on PencilKings.com

The basics are important even though I don't plan on being a rule follower with my own art. I need to spend the time learning, studying, and absorbing as much information as I can. 

I'm going to be posting my practice and my studies so be prepared. 

Some of them are going to suck. I'm okay with that. 

The important thing is to learn, not be afraid to fail, and keep trying. As long as I don't quit...I can't lose. 

I must be crazy.

I honestly must be crazy. 

I must be crazy to be this devoted to trying to figure out what my artistic purpose is. 

I get so frustrated with myself because it almost feels like I'm losing focus sometimes but in reality I'm trying to find my voice and figure out the best way to say what I want to say with my art. I'm tough on myself because I know that's what it's going to take. 

I read and study all kinds of work each and every day. 

I want to absorb as much of a variety of art that I can to help build my visual language. 

I've been doing this for over a year now and looking back I've definitely progressed beyond where I was but I have so much further to go. 

I look at my work now and I'm disappointed. I want it to be more. I want it to have feeling and life but it doesn't. So what do I do? I start over. 

Who does that? 

Who spends hours working on something and then when it's finished realizes it doesn't look the way it's supposed to so they start over? 

I do. 

I must be crazy.